Supporting Perinatal substance use Prevention, Recovery, and Treatment in Colorado
SuPPoRT Colorado envisions a Colorado that serves all families through prevention and reduction of substance use during pregnancy, and provides multigenerational support for families to thrive.
SuPPoRT Colorado 2025-2026 Priority Areas
Improve cross-systems coordination to:
Reduce substance use during the pregnancy and postpartum periods, resulting in fewer infants prenatally exposed to substances and reduce barriers to seeking early treatment and care.
Reduce level of child welfare system involvement and disproportionate impacts related to prenatal substance exposure.
Improve lifespan health and well-being outcomes, build sustainable social support networks, and narrow the gaps in outcomes for all families impacted by substance use and recovery during the perinatal period.
Focus Area 1
State level systems building to address fragmented systems, inconsistent ability to find and use services, and family experiences across CO, especially at the intersection of child welfare, health care, early childhood, early intervention, and judicial systems (i.e. civil, criminal justice, Office of Respondent Parent Counsel, Office of Child’s Representative).
Focus Area 2
Support community level strategy implementation, including enhanced Care Coordination, beginning prenatally extending through birth hospitalization and the first year postpartum – and with a focus on care transitions.
Focus Area 3
Strengthen Individual Level supports for families impacted by prenatal substance use.
PROGRESS OVER A DECADE
SuPPoRT Colorado has made significant progress over the past decade, advancing a variety of notable projects and initiatives.
LEGISLATIVE CHANGE
SuPPoRT Colorado also has a long history of providing subject matter expertise, translating best practice recommendations into critical statutory changes to improve the care of families impacted by prenatal substance exposure.
HB12-1100 Pregnancy & Evidence Of Substance Use
Developed the language for HB12-1100 and worked with partners and legislators to ensure its passage to protect drug screens and test results obtained through prenatal care from being used in criminal prosecution of a pregnant person.
HB19-1193 Behavioral Health Supports For High-risk Families
Recommended the expansion of the criminal protection from HB12-1100 to also include conversations with behavioral health providers about substance use during pregnancy through HB19-1193.
SB20-028 Substance Use Disorder Recovery
Drafted and convened a stakeholder process for components of SB20-028 regarding updating child abuse and neglect definitions related to prenatal substance exposure to de-emphasize the focus on positive drug tests for controlled substances at time of birth and to increase consistency in holistic assessments of families.
HISTORY & MISSION
The SuPPoRT Colorado Steering Committee was established in 2008 and is a subcommittee of the Colorado Substance Abuse Trend and Response Task Force.
The SuPPoRT Colorado Steering Committee is tasked with identifying and implementing strategies for reducing the number of families impacted by substance use during pregnancy and for improving outcomes for families across the lifespan.
The SuPPoRT Colorado Steering Committee exemplifies a collaborative approach to addressing community issues and continues to engage additional partners as appropriate to effectively address program targets.
LEADERSHIP & FAMILY ADVISORY BOARD
The SuPPoRT Colorado Steering Committee is co-chaired by Dr. Lauren Bruns, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and Newborn Hospitalist with Children’s Hospital Colorado; Kallen Thornton, Maternal, Child, & Reproductive Health Manager at the Colorado Behavioral Health Administration; and Jillian Fabricius, Co-Executive Director of Illuminate Colorado.
In 2019, the Family Advisory Board (FAB) to the SuPPoRT Colorado Steering Committee was formed in order to elevate the voices of families who have experienced, directly or indirectly, the impacts of substance use during pregnancy.
The FAB identifies barriers and facilitators in seeking support and services, raises awareness about best practices when working with families, and informs priority-setting within the SuPPoRT Colorado Steering Committee to best serve the needs of families impacted by substance use.
RESOURCES
FASD RESOURCES
FASD 101
Learn the basics about FASDs – and educate others – with a presentation slide deck from SuPPoRT Colorado‘s Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) Work Group.
FASD United's Family Navigator
The FASD United Family Navigator provides individuals living with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD), their family members, caregivers and supporters with expert, confidential support and referrals.
FASD DD Services Info Sheet
Learn how to obtain Developmental Disability (DD) services with an FASD diagnosis in the state of Colorado with this info sheet.
Navigating the Education System
If you have questions about FASD and navigating the educational system, CDE provides resources, training, and consultation to guide you. Visit the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) Website at CDE to get started.
SEEKING AN FASD DIAGNOSIS?
Getting a diagnosis of a Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) can result in additional support, like developmental disability services or educational services, but it can be difficult for families to find a provider in Colorado equipped to make an FASD diagnosis.
That's why we created a list of providers equipped to diagnose under the FASD umbrella. We also provide information for FASD-informed behavioral health care providers.
Want to add your information to the provider list? Contact Kelli at ksutton@illuminatecolorado.org.
Did You Know?
There are special support groups for families impacted by FASD!
Circle of Parents® offers peer support groups for anyone in a parenting and/or caregiving role. Through free group sessions, participants are provided a safe, confidential, and non-judgmental space to discuss the successes and challenges of raising children, share ideas, resources, and support, and build their confidence, skills, and knowledge as caregivers.
Look for the FASD groups in the “Parents of Children with Special Needs” category!
More on FASD
Illuminate Colorado recognizes the unique challenges that families face when impacted by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD). That’s why we provide trainings and resources about the topic.
PLAN OF SAFE CARE RESOURCES
Plan of Safe Care Best Practices
- View the best practice recommendations (Google Doc)
- Download the best practice recommendations (PDF)
Need additional training or support? Take this quick survey.
Plan of Safe Care One Pager
Download the one pager!
CAPTA Plan of Safe Care Website
Explore the National Center on Substance Abuse and Child Welfare’s CAPTA Plan of Safe Care information and resources.
Want to learn more about Plans of Safe Care (POSC)? Visit the Plans of Safe Care page to learn more about our POSC work and to access more tools and materials, including a POSC toolkit.
TOXICOLOGY TESTING RESOURCES
Indications for Toxicology Testing
- View the best practice guidelines (Google Doc)
- Download the best practice guidelines (PDF)
Need additional training or support? Take this quick survey.
Toxicology Testing One Pager
Download the one pager!
Data Snapshot
SuPPoRT Colorado recognizes the importance of advancing data capacity and researching priorities regarding perinatal substance use prevention, treatment, and wraparound support systems and services. In an effort to address this, the Steering Committee has identified the need for a statewide data snapshot that provides a high-level understanding of perinatal substance use in Colorado. As a publicly available and easily digestible resource, the goal of the data snapshot is to help drive data-informed policy and practice related to perinatal substance use prevention, treatment, and support systems throughout the state.
Illuminate Colorado worked closely with our strategic partner and project lead, the Kempe Center for the Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect, to refine and finalize the Scope of Work and the final Snapshot was completed by the Kempe Center and has been presented to multiple audiences.
The snapshot follows the perinatal period from pre-pregnancy to post-pregnancy and includes health, substance use, and resource-related indicators from three administrative datasets in 2020.
GET INVOLVED
Join an Email List
SuPPoRT Colorado is convening, supporting, and guiding work groups to advance the priority areas identified in 2020 by the SuPPoRT Colorado Family Advisory Board and Steering Committee and informed by stakeholder input.
Join the Family Advisory Board
In 2019, the Family Advisory Board (FAB) to the Steering Committee was formed with the purpose of elevating the voices of families who have experienced, directly or indirectly, the impacts of substance use during pregnancy in order to understand barriers and inform priority-setting.
Backbone Support
The Illuminate Colorado Behavioral Health Initiatives Team supports the SuPPoRT Colorado Steering Committee and Family Advisory Board, the CHoSEN Collaborative, and the SuPPoRT Colorado Work Groups.
After you sign up to join a work group, we will reach out with more information to get you everything you need to get involved.
Resourced by:
Questions?
Contact Kelli Sutton, Director of Behavioral Health Initiatives
